Wednesday, May 16, 2012

[Review] Black Bombaim - Titans

Black -bloody- Bombaim are BACK! Hell yeah! I live for this kind of stuff. The Portuguese trio are back two years after "Saturdays And Time Travels" to blow my head for once more. The well suited album's title "Titans" says it all. Oh man... From the time they sent me a request for reviewing "Titans", I keep thinking what I'm going to write. You know when it comes to one of your favorite bands, it's quite hard to be objective and stuff like that. Especially when they released an album where you can't spot a single tiny flaw...

Black Bombaim for me are the European Earthless. They proved it with their previous releases and they reinforced my statement with this one. What we have here is one hour of divine spacey, heavy jams attacking your brain cells and taking you for a trip to infinity. But this time they're not alone... Co-travelers to their journey are -among other Portuguese musicians who I don't have the luck to know- Noel V. Harmonson from Comets On Fire and Sic Alps, Isaiah Mitchell from Earthless and Howlin Rain and Steve Mackay from The Stooges. Yes I know... it keeps getting better but wait until you listen to it...

"Titans" tracks are simply titled by the musicians' names participating in each one, since they're the titans... Album kicks in with a nearly 20min jam where we have the contribution of Noel V. Harmonson, Adolfo Luxúria Canibal, Jorge Coelho and Shela. I don't know whose vocals we're listening here but I loved their rawness (even if in the beginning sound a little bit strange). It also has an acoustic "intermission" around six minutes prior to its end, working as a wonderful passage to three and a half minutes of doomy awesomeness.

In the second track it's time for Tiago Jónatas and Guilherme Canhão to take action. It has a briliant spacey/kraut key-driven opening for almost five minutes and then the holocaust begins with a lot of Atomic Bitchwax references as well as a kind of tribute to the 60's/70's heavy psych pioneers... Great stuff!

Third track and probably my favorite one is where Steve Mackay and Isaiah Mitchell join their forces for 16 minutes of heavenly goodness... The sax-driven, jazzy intro (well when I'm referring to the intro, I mean the first four-five minutes) is appropriately placed in a track like this one leading us to the adventurous explorations of Black Bombaim.

"Titans" closes with a 10min track "supported" by Ghuna X, Hhy and Tiago Pereira and for me is the album's weakest moment (hear hear... a tiny dose of objectivity). Not that it's bad or anything, just weaker comparing to the previous ones. I really liked though the second half where it's getting a heavier turn with the right quantity of groove.

Once more Black Bombaim fulfilled my expectations and my thirst for heavy psych jams by releasing a top-notch album. The band is tight as always, all the guest musicians give their best, completely justifying the title of the album. Guitar's riffs and solos are exceptional and I have to give my kudos for the drumming which really stands out throughout the album. Don't forget to mention the voluminous bass lines which play a significant part to "Titans" structure.AS expected, production is faultless and gives Black Bombaim's playing the "live feeling" needed in this kind of musict. Yes, I may be subjective or even biased if you will but "Titans" is out there waiting for you; go check it and prove me wrong...